Services

Couples Therapy

In our busy times many couples don't find enough time for each other. Creating and maintaining intimate relationships is much harder than most of us ever expected. What we really want in life is to feel truly understood and acknowledged by those close to us, but so many barriers appear. Fortunately, we can learn skills to help us bridge the difficulties and feel whole and connected.

I work with couples who:

• Have been stuck in repetitive and hurtful arguments and can't find a way out

• Love each other but keep hurting each other

• Can't find a way to be connected and still hold on to themselves

• Find their lives together routine and uninspiring

• Want to recover from betrayals such as infidelity

• Desire a way to communicate better

• Need to figure out whether or not to end the relationship

Using Imago Therapy I can help you:

• Understand why we are attracted to our partners and why some of the qualities we once loved now drive us crazy

• Learn a communication skill which encourages cooperation and understanding rather than blame and defensiveness

• Take issues in which we find ourselves repeatedly stuck and find new ways to resolve them

• Find a road to renewed pleasure in our relationship

I am a certified Imago Therapist. Imago Therapy is a process developed by best-selling authors Harville Hendrix and Helen LaKelly Hunt to help couples develop an understanding of how conflict can help us heal ourselves and our relationships. It teaches couples techniques to step out of non-productive, repetitive struggles and reach deeper levels of connections. For more information and free resources: www.gettingtheloveyouwant.com

I have completed Stan Tatkin's PACT (Psychobiological Approach to Couple Therapy, Level 1). PACT is a fusion of developmental neuroscience, attachment theory and arousal regulation. For more information and resources go to www.thepactinstitute.com.

I have completed training in the Developmental Model with Ellyn Badar and Pete Pearson.

I have completed Gottman Couples Therapy Level 1 and 2

Individual Therapy

People seek out therapy for a wide variety of reasons – stress, anxiety, depression, relationships, addictions, past traumas, or some combination thereof. Whether it’s these, or just simply the stuff of life that keeps getting in your way, it is a courageous decision to enter therapy.

Therapy begins by acknowledging this decision and getting to know you. Your story is unique, so listening to your story and what brought you into my office sets the stage for our work together.

My approach is based on understanding you, your perspective, and offering compassionate, practical feedback. By working through any problems, fears, or challenges you are experiencing, I can help you obtain a holistic understanding of yourself, and help you gain more control of emotions, increasing your ability to cope with life’s daily demands and obstacles.

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Discernment Counseling

If you or your spouse are considering divorce but are not completely sure that’s the best path, you are in a tough spot. Discernment Counseling is designed to give you a chance to slow down, take a breath, and look at your options for your marriage. 

Discernment Counseling is a new way of helping couples where one person is “leaning out” of the relationship—and not sure that regular marriage counseling would help--and the other is “leaning in”—that is, interested in rebuilding the marriage. 

During this process, I help you decide whether to try to restore your marriage to health, move toward divorce, or take a time out and decide later. 

The goal is for you to gain clarity and confidence about a direction, based on a deeper understanding of your relationship and its possibilities for the future. 

The goal of these sessions is not to solve your marital problems but to determine if they are solvable. You will each be treated with compassion and respect no matter how you are feeling about your marriage at the moment. No bad guys and no good guys. 

You will come in as a couple, but the most important work occurs in the one-to-one conversations with me as your counselor. Why? Because you are starting out in different places. 

I emphasize the importance of each of you seeing your own contributions to the problems and the possible solutions. This will be useful in future relationships even if this one ends. 

Number of Sessions: A maximum of five counseling sessions. The first session is usually two hours and the subsequent are 1.5 or 2 hours. 

Discernment Counseling is not suited for these situations:

• When one spouse has already made a final decision to divorce
• When one spouse is coercing the other to participate
• When there is danger of domestic violence 

For more information go to www.discernmentcounseling.com 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egLNQ0o_DsQ&list=UUx73GqqrQRLtRg7plO4lXmw

Family Therapy

Family therapy can help you improve troubled relationships with your spouse, children, or other family members. You may address specific issues such as marital or financial problems, conflict between parents and children, or the impact of substance abuse or a mental illness on the entire family.

Family therapy is often short term. It may include all family members or just those able or willing to participate. Your specific treatment plan will depend on your family's situation. Family therapy sessions can teach you skills to deepen family connections and get through stressful times, even after you're done going to therapy sessions.

Family therapy can be useful in any family situation that causes stress, grief, anger or conflict. It can help you and your family members understand one another better and bring you closer together.

Grief Therapy

Grief is a profound and complex emotion that touches the lives of individuals and families in unique ways. When faced with loss, whether it's the death of a loved one, a significant life change, or the end of a meaningful relationship, the experience of grief can be overwhelming. Understanding the importance of providing a safe and supportive space for individuals and families to navigate this challenging journey is top of mind when helping those coping with grief.

Grief therapy is designed to help you or your family cope with the wide range of emotions that accompany loss. My goal is to provide a compassionate and understanding environment where you can explore, identify, and express your feelings in a healthy and healing way.

I am here to support you and your family through the grieving process, helping you find ways to honor your loss while moving forward with hope and resilience.